Background: Living kidney donation is one of the few instances in medicine in
which a healthy individual undergoes a surgical intervention for the principal
benefit of someone else. The short-term complications of living donation are
infrequent, making it a safe procedure. However, the long-term risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease remains uncertain. The aim of this study was to evaluate cardiovascular disease and hypertension in living kidney donors.
Material/Methods: A total of 66 living donor open nephrectomies were performed in the Department of General and Transplantation Surgery at the Warsaw Medical University between 1995 and 2005. Physical examination, blood and urine tests, ECG, ambulatory blood pressure measurement, cardiac echography and ophthalmoscopy were performed. Donor mean age was 40.9 years (range 29-60). The donors were predominantly female (52.5%). 27 donors did not report for follow-up visits. Observation period ranged from 36 to 156 months.
Results: Two patients (5.1%) were hypertensive before donation. One of them continued to had well-controlled hypertension after nephrectomy. Hypertensive angiopathy on ophthalmoscopy was observed in a 57-year old woman six years after donation. Ten patients (25.6%) developed hypertension after nephrectomy. Hypertension was observed in 14.3% (3/21) women and 38% (7/18) men. Cardiovascular disease (silent myocardial infarction) was observed in a 58-year old man. There was no mortality.
Conclusions: The risk of cardiovascular disease does not increase after living
kidney donation. The frequency of hypertension and cardiovascular disease
after living kidney donation is lower than in the general population.

Keywords: Kidney Transplantation, Living Donors